We’ve taken a peek at some of the merchandise. The time has now come for the actual event. The Walt Disney World® Marathon takes place this week! It’s time to lace up those shoes and get running! The 2026 Walt Disney World® Marathon Weekend takes place from January 7 – 11, 2026. That means starting Wednesday, events will take place across the resort catering to runners participating in the runDisney event.
runDisney Health & Fitness Expo
The Health & Fitness Expo takes place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Participants of the marathon will need to visit this event at least one day prior to their first race event to pick up their bibs, participant shirts, and merchandise. Here are the hours for the runDisney Health & Fitness Expo:
- Wednesday: 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM
- Thursday: 12:00 PM – 7:00 PM
- Friday: 12:00 PM – 7:00 PM
- Saturday: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM
As with other runDisney Health & Fitness Expos, there will be a virtual queue for merchandise on Wednesday. Participants can enter the virtual queue in the MyDisneyExperience app starting at 8:30 AM Eastern. However, you must be within 45 miles of Walt Disney World property before you can enter the queue. Therefore, if you are at your nearby hotel (or at home, if you live near Orlando), you can enter the queue from the comfort of your room. You will then get an anticipated entry time to purchase merchandise so you know when to head to the Wide World of Sports Complex. The virtual queues are only in place for day one of the expo to control the crowd level shopping for race weekend merchandise.
Race Events
- Walt Disney World 5K: Thursday
- Walt Disney World 10K: Friday
- Walt Disney World Half Marathon: Saturday
- Walt Disney World® Marathon: Sunday
- Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge (Half Marathon + Marathon): Saturday & Sunday
- Dopey Challenge (All Races): Thursday – Sunday
If you are participating in this week’s Walt Disney World® Marathon Weekend, have fun and good luck! For those who missed out but would like to participate next year, here’s how you can register for a runDisney race. If you are not participating but will be at The Most Magical Place on Earth later this week, be aware that there will be some traffic challenges early in the morning this weekend. Plus, as MouseHouseNews.net has previously reported, there will be increased crowds due to the event. Regardless, we hope you enjoy your time at Disney World!
